Viral
Viral, stylized as VIRAL 'and known as '''Gaika '''during pre-release, is an open world first-person shooter game developed by Ikonix Game Labs and published by Ikonix Softworks Publishing Division through the Cloud Nine client on the Omnix console and other supporting platforms. It takes place in the futuristic megalopolis Lincoln, where the government has evolved into the omnipresent entity through the use of artificial intelligence and media. Premise The player assumes control over a youngster nicknamed ''Echo, a talented futurist and freelance inventor who joins The Radicals, a Pirate Party-inspired movement conspiring against the all-knowing law enforcement of Lincoln. The setting is inspired by cyberpunk aesthetics, however the tone and mood is more positive. Lincoln is not depicted as a dystopia, neither are the inhabitants treated poorly. The Radicals are driven by a disassociation between a free life and a safe life, feeling the oppression suppresses their individuality and nature as humans. Gameplay The game resolves around standard, smooth shooter mechanics infused with role-playing elements akin the Bioshock series. The player has access to abilities in the form of hacking and entering Cyberspace, a realm that is connecting all of Lincoln's electronics with one another. The game is played with a 'take-your-own-approach' playstyle in mind, with a standard, high difficulty requiring cunning use of abilities, instead of raw shooter mechanics to finish levels. Missions can be taken on in non-linear fashion, sometimes preparations can be made to ease a difficult mission by acquiring information or setting up traps in previous missions. The player also has a unique alter ego for the cyberspace: an Avatar. They will play as this avatar during cyberspace segments. Avatar's are customizable and highly stylized, with segments in cyberspace not bound by regular physics. The Avatars are also used in the game's designated PvP-modes, where players can duke it out with their Avatars in a repurposed, stolen police training simulation that the Radicals use for training themselves in the use of firearms, as well as pleasure purposes. Besides PvP in a competitive setting, the game also features online interaction in the 'single player' mode. Besides being able to play missions cooperatively through the creation of clans within the Radicals, there are Incursion missions, which are raid-like missions where players are tasked with infiltrating high-security facilities and steal information or technology. During this, players in a separate queue can align with the law enforcement to prevent the Incursion from succeeding, retrieving rewards if successful. Characters The playable character is a teen with the nickname Echo. Originally a twin, during the game's prologue, the player can select to play either as the boy or the girl, resulting in the selection of the gender. Echo is of korean descent and originally rescident of the segregated Koreatown, a notorious area of Lincoln that is under heavy crackdown by law enforcement. An incident with autonomous police robots that resulted in the death of the twin brother/sister is the reason Echo joins the Radicals movement during its early days, intend on building it up to an equalist empire. Customization Viral features a wide character diversification throughout the game. The player can customize multiple levels of his character, from aesthetics to skills. Aesthetics are clothes that can be bought with in-game currency and are there for player-enjoyment, as they do no impact gameplay whatsoever. There are 3 distinct systems that impact gameplay though: Talents, Skills and Arsenals. Talents Talents are passive buffs to Echo, that are unlocked by level-up. Talents are divided into skill-trees, with some having an unlock-barrier linked to Skills. There are 3 different Skill-trees: ''Martial'', ''Intellect'' and ''Agility''. Skills Skills are remniscent of classic RPG classes, with Echo following the discipline of 2 Skill-sets (a.k.a. Classes). Skills both have passive and active components and are unlocked by completing challenges with that Skill-set equipped. Arsenals Arsenals are a variation of the classic loadout. Echo has a single Arsenal equipped, having to manually equip a different one at designated zones. Items in the Arsenal include weapons, items and consumeables. However, the Arsenals also include equipment of the Avatar, which can be downloaded and uploaded at any moment. There is interplay between equipment of Echo and his avatar, meaning they can benefit from one another.